(Admin Core) We have established an innovative Program entitled ?Developmental Mechanisms of Human Idiopathic Scoliosis?. This program combines unbiased gene discovery in humans, modeling and gene discovery in zebrafish, and genomic analysis of gene regulatory sequences that will define the underlying causes of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS), the most common musculoskeletal disorder in children. Three research groups are leading these efforts. Project 1 ?Human? focuses on AIS gene discovery and is led by Carol A. Wise, PD, PI, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. Project 2 ?Zebrafish? is led by Lila Solnica-Krezel, Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis. Project 3 ?Genomics? is led by Nadav Ahituv, University of California San Francisco. The Administrative Core will aid activities of the Program, which is already a working collaborative, and will be ultimately responsible for its execution and productivity. The Core will facilitate organization, communication, data flow, compliance, and productivity between the research groups. Specific responsibilities of the Core will be to ensure effective and frequent communication between component groups of the project, to establish and communicate with an Advisory Committee, to respond to advice from the committee, to ensure that funding is disbursed appropriately, to maintain compliance and oversee quality control, and to support high productivity. The Program Director Dr. Wise and an administrative assistant will oversee the administration of the Program. A primary activity of the Administrative Core will be to coordinate frequent, structured meetings between groups and the Advisory Committee as a forum for regular updates, to promote the exchange of ideas and data, and to keep the program on track by monitoring adherence to established timelines. The Core will organize an annual, dedicated face-to-face meeting of the Program components and Advisory Committee. The core will also coordinate meetings at conferences, notably the NICHD Birth Defects workshop and other professional meetings. Importantly, the Administrative core will summarize key conclusions and critical follow-up steps that emerge from all meetings, whether electronic or in person, for the Program. Otherwise the Administrative Core will be responsible for regularly monitoring budgets, compliance with ethical guidelines, compliance with institutional and federal requirements (e.g. institutional review boards, institutional animal care and use committees), and compliance with data-sharing policies. Finally, the Core will facilitate the preparation and submission of manuscripts, ensuring fairness and consistency with NIH public access policies. In these ways the Core will promote synergistic interaction within the Program and hasten the goal to decipher the pathogenesis of AIS. 1
